The discussion below is merely provided for general background information and is not intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.
The present disclosure relates to a method for storage and/or transport of solid lactide particles in a container, said method comprising the following steps: a) inserting the lactide particles into the container, b) storing and/or transporting the lactide particles for a period of time in the container, and c) removing the lactide particles from the container. The disclosure also relates to the use of an optimized container for storage and/or transport of lactide particles.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,203,008 describes lactide particles having a certain surface/volume ratio, which are stable enough to be stored and transported at room temperature, and which have a quality enough for use as a starting material for the production of polylactide (PLA) or other products that contain lactide. In laboratory scale experiments, small amounts of lactide particles have been stored in air-tight and vapor-tight bags, comprising a polyethylene inner bag contained in an aluminum bag.
In the current storage and transport of lactide (sometimes named ‘di-lactide’) in particulate form in mass production amounts, so-called octabins are widely used as a container of lactide particles. Octabins are large, dimensionally standardized containers made of thick cardboard, optionally being provided with an inner polyethylene bag (inner-liner). The major part of the mechanical strength of octabins is provided by the cardboard parts. Octabins usually have a width from 80 to 120 cm and a depth of 120 cm and vary in height from 50 cm up to 200 cm. Their capacity is normally around 1,000 kg but the larger units can store even 1,700 kg. Emptying is made easy by either tilting the octabin, opening a hole in the side of it or by suction.
Applicant has observed that under certain circumstances, the unloading of the lactide particles from an octabin causes problems. More specifically, continuous flow-out of the lactide particles from the octabin does not always occur under such circumstances. Complete and controlled emptying the container need additional measures, which may even lead to destruction of the octabin, so that handling time and/or costs of the unloading step are increased.
The disclosure has as an objective to solve or at least mitigate the above-mentioned technical problem. More particularly, the invention aims at providing a method for storage and/or transport lactide particles, in which hampered flow of the particles out from the container can be easily obviated. The invented method should moreover be cost-effective and easily implementable in supply chains.